…with a blended family of 7 kids, our week to week schedule is all over the place.
We have my 3 kids week on, week off, Sunday to Sunday.
We have Steve’s two oldest kids full-time. Their mom gets them every other weekend for two overnights.
We have Steve’s two younger kids from Thursday-Monday one week and wednesday-friday the next week.
Steve also has a one-on-one every other Tuesday overnight alternating through each of his kids.
Are you still with me?
So at any given time, we have no kids, 3 kids, 5 kids or 7 kids in our home.
BUT, even with that chaotic back and forth, I STILL notice that if there is a change to THAT schedule, it affects the kids.
WHY?!
Because kids thrive on routine.
They need to know what to expect and the more consistent those expectations can be, the less anxiety and confusion it will cause them.
This allows kids to flourish!
So, when we suddenly get all the kids for Steve’s birthday, when we wouldn’t normally have them all, it becomes the birthday from hell.
Ok, it wasn’t that bad, but I ( me, myself, and I) needed a lot more time outs than I had time for!
So, if routines are a struggle for you, pick one thing that you can keep the same everyday.
Is it reading to your kids every night before bed?
Is it taking a walk after dinner?
Is it having a check list out for kids every morning to make sure the essentials are getting done?
Is it allowing a half hour of play after school before homework/reading/sports/chores so kids can decompress?
I saw a reel where a mom shared that every night at 8 she has an alarm go off and everyone stops what they are doing to help tidy the house. Everyone is assigned a different area and they pick up and put away everything in their area, whether they got it out or not!
It’s brilliant and I started it this week with great success!
A lot of families with younger kids do the “power” or “magic” hour after dinner where one parent plays with the kids while the other parent cleans up and gets the house back in order.
Find something that works for you and start today!
If you can’t think of anything, then
Play.
Repeat.
It’s the HuggaBuddies routine and we approve.
